Razor.



A. W. PROGTOR. RAZOR.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 31, 1910.

1,057,272. v Patented Mar. 25,1913.

UNITED STATES, PATENT "OFFICE.

ALFRED wA rERs raocroa, or NEW Yoax, N. Y., assrenon r0 GILLETTE SAFETY nA-zon-coMraNY, A coarona'rron or MAINE.

more.

specification or. Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 25, 1913.

' Application filed lanuary 31, 1910. Serial No. 549,939.

ent 775,134, having a removable, discardable, cheap sheet-metal blade thin enough to be made-a proper razor cutter by simply sharpening or grinding an edge or ed es thereof, and combined with a holder whlch supplies that particular rigidity for shaving which theblade inherently lacks by reason of its thinness. In the present application the above same general purposes or.

results are attained'in a holderof thesam'e general kind, but by improvements exclu sively directed to thetang or ordinary razor type thereof, the invention consisting in the. features of construction hereinafter pointed.

out. .The present invention also secures that symmetry which is made an additional subject of the said patent, and, as disclosed in the patent, by having a handle located midwaybet-ween the edges of the guard and symmetrically arranged with res ect thereto.

The main end of the present lnvention is to secure the above and other general Gil; lette purposes in a cheap, easy and convenient and satisfactory way, particularly adapted to the tang type of raz'or.

To this end the invention consists in the features of construction, and combination as hereinafter set forth and claimed.

In the drawings: Figure 1 is aside view of a safety razor embodying the principles of my invention. Fig. 2 is a similar view from the opposite side, showing the parts bar or member to support the cutter and extending in or substantially in a plane thereof and parallel to and equi-distant between the cutting edges." This tang therefore corre sponds generally to what is known as the tang in an ordinary old fashioned razor and as distinguished from a handle which extends as shown in the Gillette patent referred to. In' the drawings 2 designates such a tang which is pivoted to a handle 1. The tang as above defined will have supported thereon a bolt 8 for the purpose ofaftaching together the guard 3 and backing 4 In the best construct-ions embodying the invention, the bolt will enter between the guard and backing and will constitute substantially the main support for holding theguard and backing to the tang. In other Words, the bolt in the best constructions embodying the invention will have two func-- tions, first to hold the guard and backing together and clamp the blade 5, and secondto hold the guard and backing firmly on the tang. To these functionsare'added'others which are preferably also'ut-ilized as later described. Itis part of the invention to have all the foregoing functions provided for by means which is, substantially concealed and which is furthermore very thin and compact so that the complete razor will be thin, delicate and wafer like.

The particular form'of bolt on the guard may vary somewhat in practice,,and it may further be. arranged so as not to. discharge.

all of the manifold functions which it performs in the particular construction illustrated. "In theapproved form however it comprises a slender needle-like rod. 8 pointed or wedge sha ed at its outer extremity 9 and merging into a flattened portion 10 of the tang 2. p

The guard may have any suitable toothed or other edge or edges which form no partof the present invention. The backing 4 will also have. an edge or edges to support the blade 5 and will cooperate with the guard to clamp the blade between the two. In accordance with the present invention, the guard and backing have cooperating lugs provided withbolt receiving apertures 6, 6 the essential purpose of which is to cooperate with the bolt 8 to lock the guard and backing together. In the approved construction the lugs will serve a further purpose of positioning the blade; Them'anner of engagement of the bolt-with the'lugs 6, 6 will vary according to the character of the bolt. Where a slender needle-like rod 8 is employed the lugs 6, 6 will have holessuitable to receive the rod.

It is part of the idea of the foregoing construction to have the locking engagement between, the, guard and the backing very compact, and this is satisfied by'the use of a slender needle-like rod 8 which will ass through exceedingly-small holes 7 in the ugs 6, 6 so that the combined thickness of the blade portionof the razor will only be the thickness of the rod' 8 plus that of the blade plus that of the guard and backing.- As the latter may be made of thin sheet metal, and since the blade is very thin, the combined thickness may be made as little as three thirty-seconds or one-eighth of an inch. In the drawings the proportions are exaggerated for clearness.

There are several other characteristics, attributes or services secured by the present invention, the first of which is complete reversibility in every sense. It is part of the idea of the present invention to have the guard symmetricalso that it ma be assembled with either end forward on t e backing, and to have the backing correspondingly symmetrical so that it may be assembled with either end forward on the guard, and the guard and backing assembled with either end forward onrthe tang. Not only this, but the flattened portions 10 of the tang are adapted to receive the guard and backing with either face up. The importance of the foregoing characteristics lie in the ease of manipulation for cleaning and assembling which is secured thereby. A second idea or purpose or service in thebest constructions embodying the present invention is to have a clamping force put upon the blade by the resiliency of the rod 8, and which arises from the fact that the rod is drawn in one direction at its ends and at the opposite direction at its center. A third characteristic of the best constructions embodying the invention is that the pointed end 9 "ofthe rod 8 acts as a wedge to draw or clamp the guard or backing together. A final characteristic of the best constructions embodying the invention is that an adjustment is secured for fine and coarse shaves, and this is done by making the backing 4 concave so that the blade is flexed (see Figs. 4 and 5). By this construction, and by further forming the rod 8 with a flattened portion 11 on one side, it is possible to obtain a coarse adjustment by inserting the rod as shown at Fig. 4 and a fine adjustment'by inserting the rod as in Fig. 5. In Fig. 7 a modification is illustrated in which the blade is flat and is received between two split portions of a rod 8.

What I claim is-:- 1. In a razor, a tang having an elongated thin needle-like rod rigidly extending in the.

direction of its longitudinal axis, a guard and backing and blade positioning lugs provided with bolt receiving apertures spaced along the guard and backing through which said rod passes withinsaid guard and backmg.

i 2. In a razor, a guard, a backing, a tan extending in the plane of the guard an backing, a bolt having a wedge-shaped end, and blade positioning lugs provided with bolt receiving apertures on the interior engaging surfaces of said guard and backing, and through all of which said bolt is received.

3. In a razor, a guard, a backing, a tan 5 extending in a plane between the guard an backing, a bolt, and blade positioning lugs providedwith bolt receiving apertures carried by said uard and backing at the middle and ends 0% said guard and backing respectively, said lugs pulling laterally on the bolt in one direction at the middle and 01ppositely on the bolt at the ends, whereby t e resiliency of the bolt draws the guard and backing together.

4:. In a razor, a guard, a backing, a tan extending in a plane between the guard and backing, a bolt, rigidly projecting from said tang and extending longitudinally between the guard and backing, said guard and backing being both symmetrical end for end, and symmetrically arranged blade positioning lugs provided with bolt receiving apertures on the interior engaging surfaces of said guard and backing.

5. In a razor, a guard, a backing, a tan having a bolt extending in the direction 0 the length of the tang, blade positioning lugs provided with bolt receiving apertures on the interior surfaces of the guard and backing, and through all of which said bolt is received, said bolt being fiat on one side, and a flexible blade engaged by the bolt on one side and, by the backing on the other when the bolt is inserted in said lugs, whereby theblade is bent to varying de rees of flexure according to whether the be t is inserted with its flattened or its rounded side against the blade.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses, this twenty-ninth day of January 1910.

ALFRED WATERS PROCTOR.

Witnesses:

lVALoo M. CHAPIN, FLORENCE HOLMSTROM. 

